Bathing an infant is a delicate task for any parent given that babies move around in the water, and a baby's skin becomes slippery when wet with soapy water and oils used for bathing infants. In earlier times, a parent had to hold an infant with one hand and wash the infant with the other hand to protect the baby from injury. This made the bathing process difficult for infants that are too young to sit up in a bath tub or wash basin on their own.
Over the years, parents have had the benefit of baby bath tubs that are shallow enough to prevent an infant from drowning, and some baby bath tubs have shapes that help hold an infant in a safe reclining position during bath time. Babies sit directly in their bath water in these prior art devices, so the parent uses the same bath water to wash and rinse the baby therein.
Some parents prefer to wash their baby in the sink or in a regular bath tub located in a standard bathroom. The basins in a household sink or bath tub are too deep for a reclining infant and present serious risk of drowning if the baby is unattended for even a moment. Babies, of course, move around during their baths, so the structures and surfaces in a sink or bath tub also present risks of bumps and bruises if the infant accidentally hits a hard surface with too much force. For these reasons, modern parents often utilize seats and recliners that may be positioned within a bath tub or sink to hold the baby in place while the parent finishes the bath. Even with these devices, however, bathing the baby requires the parent to reach down into a bath tub while in a kneeling position or stand over a crowded sink with a faucet obstructing the process.
The art of infant bathers, therefore, would benefit from a new design that secures the baby in a safe position relative to a basin of water, provides a convenient mechanism for the parent complete the bath, and ensures that the infant is in the healthiest environment possible for bathing.